Signposting
Also said as Yellow paint, Visual language, Affordance marking
Marking what matters so that it stands out from everything else: a colour on every climbable ledge, a light over the correct door, one kind of crack on every wall that breaks. Players learn the code once and read it for the rest of the game.
Detailed art makes everything look equally important. Without a visual code, players search every surface by trying it, and that reads as being lost or stupid.
Say it
“Paint every climbable ledge with the same yellow strip, 10 cm wide, and use that yellow on nothing else in the game.”
Where you’ve seen it
Mirror's Edge paints the way ahead in red with its Runner Vision, so you can read a route across rooftops while at full sprint. The remake of Resident Evil 4 set off an argument in 2023 over its yellow paint on crates and ledges.
Not to be confused with breadcrumbing
Signposting marks a thing so it can be found. Breadcrumbs lay a route you follow one step at a time.